FOOD DIARY: Show us the money

ROME, 4 June 2008 (IRIN) - Almost every head of government who has been up to the podium at the Rome summit to say their bit on the food crisis has also said something about the need to invest in higher yielding, drought-resistant crop varieties.

But almost no one has paid attention to the funding. The leader on developing new crop varieties, the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), whose 15 centres are spread across the world, have been told they will have to make do with at least $30 million less money this year from the US administration.

Emile Frison, director-general of Bioversity International, one of the CGIAR centres, told IRIN: "It is like being told that one of your centres cannot function any more - it also means we have no money for new research."

CGIAR, established in 1971, is a strategic partnership whose 64 members work in collaboration with hundreds of government and civil society organisations as well as private businesses. More than 8,000 CGIAR scientists and staff are active in over 100 countries throughout the world.

Frison said it was "ironic" that in his opening address Ed Schafer, the US secretary for agriculture, referred to his discussions with Norman Borlaug, the Noble prize winning agronomist who was responsible for advancing the Green Revolution. "Dr Borlaug has written several letters to the administration asking them to reconsider its decision to cut the funding," said Frison.

"Maybe, with all these new promises of funding being made here [in Rome] maybe they might reconsider," said a still hopeful Frison.

jk/oa